In the cutthroat world of manga, keeping a series alive is a brutal battle. We've all heard tales of beloved titles getting the axe, or worse, vanishing into thin air without a trace. But usually, it's about sales or popularity.
However, a truly wild story dropped today (January 28th) from Libre's "Be x Boy" editorial department, a major player in the BL manga scene. They announced the immediate halt of their web manga, "Kaichou, Jinnan-san ga Hen desu" (President, Jinnan-san is Strange), originally by Tsurukame Mayo with art by Shoo. The reason? A complete breakdown of trust between the editorial team and the original creator. Naturally, the internet is buzzing: what exactly did the editors do to make an author pull their own work?
While "President, Jinnan-san is Strange" never got a physical release, it had been running online for about a year and a half, racking up 40 chapters.
According to the "Be x Boy" editorial statement, they "regret to announce the discontinuation of the vertical-scroll manga, 'President, Jinnan-san is Strange,' and deeply apologize to readers who were looking forward to its continuation." They then laid out the shocking reasons: "The primary cause for the discontinuation is the editorial department's breach of trust with the original author. We failed to properly manage the production schedule and did not uphold the conditions initially promised to the storyboard artist. Furthermore, during the digital bookstore distribution, despite the work being created for a general audience, the editorial department mistakenly categorized and listed it in the adult section."
They continued: "Our handling of these issues further eroded the original author's trust. Additionally, due to personal circumstances of the artist and insufficient handling by the editorial department, we could not maintain the existing distribution pace. For these reasons, after multiple consultations with all parties involved, the final decision was made to cease distribution of this work. We will proceed with the delisting process sequentially."
The statement concluded with a final apology: "We extend our deepest apologies to the authors, readers, and all involved parties, and once again express our profound regret for the continuous errors made by the vertical-scroll manga editorial department. We will thoroughly review our operations and systems and strive to rebuild trust."
Fans are understandably gutted, especially since the editorial department had announced a hiatus for "President, Jinnan-san is Strange" earlier in January, citing "various reasons." Nobody expected it to escalate to a full-blown cancellation just weeks later.
Original author Tsurukame Mayo also expressed their disappointment, stating that while the outcome is regrettable, this was a work they poured about three years into, including preparation. They thanked everyone who supported the series during its run but confirmed that the work would not continue.
This isn't the first time "Be x Boy" has landed in hot water. Just last December, the same editorial department was forced to apologize and pull the digital version of "The Unwanted Prince's Marriage" after they illegally produced and uploaded it without the original author's permission, a blatant infringement of rights! Fans are now fuming, asking how many times these "mistakes" will happen before the publisher learns its lesson. It's a worrying sign for other creators currently working with them – even if expectations for the publisher are low, basic respect for authors should be non-negotiable.
It's incredibly rare to see a manga get axed due to editorial blunders of this magnitude. Ending a series this way doesn't just hurt the creators; it completely shatters the trust of the fans.